While every country is unique, there is truly no other place in the world like Singapore. It is both traditional and modern, corporate and cosmopolitan, and it has earned its reputation for curating an eclectic food and beverage scene that appeals to locals and travellers alike. If you haven’t had the pleasure of enjoying a coffee in Singapore, then you might not know the rich history of the coffee industry. The growth of the Singaporean coffee scene is one that many have analysed, so let’s get familiar with the key events and customs that surround this growth area.
What does the coffee industry analysis tell us about Singapore?
If 2019 coffee industry analysis is anything to go by, it would seem that the cocktail scene is being overshadowed by migration to coffee culture. It wasn’t too long ago that the coffee offering was confined to global chains and restaurants that merely had a coffee machine to support their bigger trade. Now, Singapore is seeing exponential retail growth and volume growth for coffee, which includes fresh coffee beans right through to quality coffee pods. Like the chicken and the egg, it’s hard to say if Singapore is bringing boutique cafes to the scene due to the sophisticated maturing of customer coffee preferences, or if these specialist coffee venues are educating the Singaporean population of the different blends and tastes available. Regardless of what came first, the introduction of these cafe concepts and the need for better coffee has seen some fantastic investment opportunities, with cafes bringing competing aesthetics to the scene and essentially leaning into the atmosphere rather than simply setting up a takeaway window.
It’s also worth calling out that Singapore is a very culturally diverse city, with Chinese, Malay, European, Western and Indian citizens living and contributing to this country. Singapore is also a fair trade and open border republic, and so these locals and ex-pats can create ideas quickly and with not as much friction as you would expect from other countries around the world, which is why Singapore is always ahead of the curve when it comes to trends. This fact and the stable economy and high earning population of Singapore set the scene for industries to really prosper.
What does the future look like?
While coffee consumption is soaring, instant coffee is still a very solid option for many Singaporean locals. This is more a case of consumers purchasing this for convenience and lower-cost rather than the taste and experience being superior, but coffee industry analysis would suggest that this may not be the case for very long if the trajectory of specialist coffee continues. Coffee pod brands that have been on the shelves in Australian supermarkets for years have only just hit Singapore in 2019, and that’s not to mention the coffee bean brands that have emerged seemingly overnight and have won the younger generations of coffee drinkers with their biodegradable and ethical offering.
Modelling has suggested that instant coffee will retain its enormous consumption, with barista quality coffee growing in its own segment and enjoying high growth. Singaporeans still categorise non-instant coffee as an experience to be enjoyed in a cafe, bar or restaurant so it will be interesting to see the growth reach a point where beans and coffee machines become a fixture in homes around Singapore.
What do the coffee industry analysis and growth mean for the tea culture in Singapore?
There are more factors at play than Singapore simply not having the infrastructure or quality coffee before now, as they are a culture in which tea drinking is engrained in daily life, regardless of generation. That said, coffee has certainly penetrated the millennial population with the greater success that tea, but this appears to be changing with tea breaking free from its reputation of being too traditional, although it isn’t growing as quickly as the coffee uptake. In fact, the saving grace of tea houses and tea varieties appealing to younger demographics has been to add fruit, bubbles and even gimmicks like a cat tea house. Certainly, no one is predicting that tea will be banished from any Asian country, but it will be interesting to see how the tea industry will compete with the coffee industry analysis and growth.
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Corporate Coffee Solutions has played an integral role in supporting the growth of coffee culture in Singapore and will continue to furnish offices with the right coffee machines and roasted coffee beans to accompany. If you would like to learn more about our offering and the right coffee machine for your needs, then contact us today!
